Thursday, February 21, 2013

The Justice in Christopher Dorner's Rebellion

The Justice in Christopher Dorner's Rebellion

-Joaquin Cienfuegos

Rebellions aren't pretty, clean, or politically correct. Rebellion is like an uncontrollable fire, catching anyone in the slave master's house, or anyone in a occupying army uniform. When Nat Turner led slave rebellions they did not make distinctions between the white person who had the whip, the plantation owner, or their wives and children. When Natives led offensives against white settlers they did not make distinctions, just like the settlers, slave owners and white people in general didn't show any mercy to THEM in the first place. This is the nature of a rebellion.

People rebel when they are beat down to a point when they can't take it anymore and oppressed systematically, erupting in a struggle, many times violent against those people who subjugate them. Some call this "false consciousness," but I see it as more than that, the spontaneity and righteousness in the people fighting back is caused by the fundamental contradictions of this society. The people will always fight back once they are brought to the point that their means of survival are dependent in this fight, this is human nature.

We are seeing a lot more people starting to wake up to the fact that there is no future for us under this system, especially if you're a person of color, a woman, poor or any other oppressed person. Christopher Dorner, is a recent example of this person who saw no hope and justice in the system, who exhausted all channels, and resorted to his military training to take justice in his own hands. This is something that was admirable for many oppressed people, and many of us cheered that aspect of this individual, and hoped he would evade capture.

Dorner wrote a Manifesto, clearly stating his targets, and that he was openly declaring war on the police. He even engaged with cops out on patrol, and people focus on the fact that in his pursuit of justice, a cop's family member and her fiance were killed by him, Michelle Quan. One has to understand that, looking at rebellions like that of Nat Turner, when the slave master's house burnt down, it included "innocent" women and children, when Natives attacked settlers, they did to them what was done to their families. The media of course mourned for the white cops that were killed, but what about the innocent people that were shot and killed by the police while they were shook and on alert, looking for Dorner. Innocent women, children, and people, were shot by the police, just like they have done in the past in Los Angeles, and Southern California, without remorse. This is something Dorner hoped to expose and wanted to bring to light. Dorner is a clear example that if you are an individual who hopes to join the police department to help your community, you will soon find out that the role of the police is not to protect and serve, and the institution in it of itself is racist and white-supremacist.

Writing this piece is not to put him up on a pedestal or worship him as a hero, but point out the fact that here is an individual, who took action, and look at the success he had, whether he hoped to live or not, that is another topic. He even waged psychological warfare against law enforcement, and it worked, they were afraid. It showed that the police do not have the type of training to take on, just one person who is determined, and who is skilled. Imagine if they were facing an entire movement. I think that if Christopher Dorner was prepared to take the fight to the next level, he would have many ready to join up with him. He could have easily taken the police into the Big Bear Mountains as well and put them at a tactical disadvantage, because they do not have that training. Unfortunately he was snitched on and gunned and burnt to death in a cabin.

For many oppressed people, he could have been an example, but we can't rely on one person to save us. We have to take destiny into our own hands and be our own liberators. We have to begin taking the fight to them, and if really want to see an end to police terrorism, state violence, and the system overall, we have to take what we do serious. I'll leave it at that. Christopher Dorner called out names of cops who are known brutal pigs, and who get promotions for being that. We can always start with them, and continue to build this movement for autonomy and self-defense of communities, and continue to decolonize the land.